“Never mind the English language,” begged Bess. “Let me look in your mirror.”
Of course, that necessitated the opening of the brand new bag. Then, when Bess thought she had discovered a suspicious redness of the tip of her nose, she must needs use the powder puff which was one of the wonderful “didos” among the toilet requisites in the bag.
While Bess was so busily engaged in restoring the havoc made upon her fresh young countenance by her recent emotion, there sounded suddenly a heavy banging and thumping underneath the chair-car in which the girls were riding, though not at their end of the coach.
Nervous people at the rear of the car jumped up and one or two screamed. Almost instantly the train began to slow down, with much hissing of steam and compressed air, and soon came to a complete stop.
Nan had jumped up, too, but not because she was frightened. None of the trainmen came in of whom to ask about the stop and Nan went to the front door and out into the vestibule. Even the colored porter was not in sight.
“What is it, Nan?” Bess asked, still powdering her nose, for she had been obliged to postpone this delicate operation until the train had come to its bumping stop.
“I don’t know,” answered her chum. “I’m going forward to ask.”
But hardly had she said this, when the rear door of the car opened and a uniformed attendant said, speaking clearly:
“All passengers are requested to move into the rear coach, with all hand baggage. This car is to be taken out of the train at once because of an accident. All passengers will please move to the rear coach with hand baggage. Another chair car will be put in to accommodate you at the junction. All back to rear coach!”
He came through shouting these directions so that all in the car could hear him. Bess jumped up, very much excited now, with: